Jack Tolan, aged 90, of Great Falls, passed away Tuesday, October 7, 2025. Jack was born on December 23, 1934, at the homestead of his parents, Nels and Margaret (Bensch) Tolan, near Poplar, Montana.
At 17, he enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps and served aboard the aircraft carrier, USS Oriskany CV-34. He served as aide-de-camp for the admiral of the 7th Fleet on two deployments to the far east. Ports of call included Hawaii, Japan, China, and the Philippines. He returned home after his discharge in 1957. He married his wife of 58 years, Virginia (Kuehne) on March 10, 1957, and moved to Great Falls, Montana. He worked for Falls Tire for a short time before forming Tolan Distributing Inc., with Virginia, as jobber for Chevron USA Inc. He continued to work even up until his death. Jack truly enjoyed his many customers when they came and visited.
Jack spent many years gardening while Virginia grew flowers. Together they were foster parents for 7 children. He was very proud of his 3 children. He rarely missed any music concerts, football games or wrestling matches. He was especially proud to attend all 3 kids’ college graduations and proud that all 3 served in the U.S. Military.
He was a cub scout and boy scout leader seeing his 2 sons on to becoming Life Scout and Eagle Scout. He is a lifetime member of the Marine Corps League. He was also a longtime member of the Fraternal Order of Eagles. He and Virginia enjoyed dancing, meeting with friends and attending family events throughout the years. They enjoyed traveling together to San Francisco, Acapulco, Seattle, Honolulu and Bermuda, as well as trips across Montana and Alberta.
Jack is preceded in death by his wife, Virginia; grandson, Daniel Wimberly; brother, Victor Tolan; and sister, Ann (Russ) Christopherson.
He is survived by his children, Desiree Tolan, Derrick Tolan and Darron (MaryBeth) Tolan, all of Great Falls; grandchildren, Matthew Wimberly of Salem, Illinois, Stephen Swindle of Great Falls, Gab Tolan and Garrett Tolan of Brush, Colorado; great-grandchildren, Joslyn Wimberly of Spokane, Washington, and McKenna Wimberly of Great Falls, Montana.
There will be a Celebration of Life for both Jack and Virginia on Saturday, November 15, 2025, at 2:00 p.m., at Schnider Funeral Home, 1510 13th St. So, Great Falls, Montana. We invite everyone to join us in saluting Jack with military honors and sharing memories of Jack and Virginia’s lives.
To share condolences, click here to visit the Schnider Funeral Home website.
